1. Field of the invention
The present invention relates to the feeding from a stack in a magazine of light-sensitive image recording sheets, in particular the feeding of microfilms to an apparatus for the exposure of documents or other information on a reduced scale onto microfiches.
2. Description of the prior art
In the feeding of recording sheets one at a time from a stack of such sheets contained in a magazine or the like to a given position, e.g. a position in an exposure station for the image-wise exposure of the sheets, it is known to prevent damage to the recording surface of the sheets and also to exclude double feeding, by keeping the sheets in the stack mutually separated by means of separating sheets (hereinafter called "spacing foils") that usually are made from a flexible material, such as paper, polyethylene and the like, and by fixing or gripping the trailing end portions of such spacing foils i.e. the end portions opposite to the feeding direction, so that these foils are not fed together with the recording sheets.
A method for feeding in this fashion is disclosed in EU Al 0 080 798, and is based on the holding of the trailing ends of the spacing foils extending beyond the corresponding ends of the image recording sheets, by means of retaining rods passing through corresponding holes in such trailing end portions.
The retaining of foils by means of rods is delicate since the rods can easily become bent or misaligned in one or another way whereby the satisfactory fitting of the foils on the rods may become troublesome.
Further, the staggered position of the trailing ends of the image recording sheets and of the spacing sheets is a disadvantage, since the position of the image recording sheets is not very well controlled thereby in the holder or magazine which the sheets are stacked. Moreover, the reliable loading in the dark of a holder with sheets the edges of which do not coincide is difficult.